Gimbap makes a U.S. comeback

Gimbap, the Korean seaweed rice roll, is catching on again in the United States.

Sales of CJ CheilJedang's Bibigo frozen gimbap in the United States rose 59 percent from a year earlier in the first seven months of the year, the company said Thursday. The number of U.S. stores carrying the product rose 146 percent, from 1,924 last year to 4,734 this year.

"As interest in K-food grows in the United States, we are strengthening our local marketing," a CJ CheilJedang spokesperson said.

Korean frozen gimbap flew off U.S. shelves in 2024 after going viral on social media.

Frozen gimbap exports to the United States jumped 1,550 percent that year to $2.2 million, according to Korea Agricultural Trade Information, the agricultural and food export data service run by the state-run Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation.

Exports then fell 80 percent last year to $440,600 as the boom cooled.

Demand is now recovering as Korean food and other Korean content gain popularity worldwide. Gimbap drew attention when it appeared in the Netflix animated film "KPop Demon Hunters" (2025), a worldwide hit. The United States, with its strong demand for convenience foods, is considered a market with large growth potential for gimbap.

CJ CheilJedang sells two flavors of Bibigo gimbap in the United States, bulgogi and spicy bulgogi, and plans to add new products made with Korean ingredients.

BY LIM SUN-YOUNG [[email protected]]